A good reason to go to the farmers' market.

The saying goes that man cannot live by bread alone, but my saying goes that I am willing to try. Anyone who has known me more than two minutes knows how I feel about the stuff. And though I appeciate bread in all its many-crumbed and -crusted varieties, I must admit that I have my favorites. And when it comes to artisanal bread in Seattle, there are some pretty good options. We have two breadmakers whose products are generally very good (Essential Bakery and Grand Central Bakery) and one whose products are generally excellent (Tall Grass Bakery). One of the best things about the new farmers' market in Phiney Ridge is that Tall Grass sells there.

You can't go wrong with one of these, my top five Seattle loaves:

1. Whole Wheat and Honey (Tall Grass)
2. Pumpernickel with Cherries (Tall Grass, seasonal)
3. Avery's Pumpernickel (Tall Grass)
4. Walnut (Essential)
5. Hominy (Tall Grass)

Runners-up include: Campagnolo (Grand Central); Pain au Levain (Tall Grass); Desem (Essential); Rye and Onion (Essential).

When I lived in Philadelphia, I used to frequent Metropolitan and LeBus, which also had some great choices (especially that LeBus multigrain mmmm!), but I don't think that either of those can compare to any of the three above bread bakers in Seattle. Maybe my next post about complex carbohydrates will be about soft pretzels, where Philadelphia has a clearer victory.